Today, January 21, 2022, at 3 p.m., a rally and human chain program was held in front of the National Press Club at the initiative of Bangladesh Krishok Federation demanding tax justice.

The rally was held in Bangladesh as part of the ’World Struggle Week’ on tax justice throughout Asia.

President of Bangladesh Krishok Federation Comrade Badrul Alam presided over the rally while Fayez Hossain, General Secretary of Bangladesh Sramik Federation, Subal Sarkar, General Secretary of Bangladesh Bhumihin Samiti, Zayed Iqbal Khan, General Secretary of Bangladesh Krishok Federation, Shamim Ara, President of Bangladesh National Labor Federation, Lovely Yasmin, Ready Made Garment Workers’ Federation, Baharane Sultan Bahar, President of Jago Bangladesh Garment Workers Federation, Saleha Islam Santona, President of Motherland Garments Workers Federation, General Secretary Md. Al Amin, Women Leader Rehana Begum, Tribal Leader Omoli Kisku, Jahangir Alam, Student Leader Masud spoke.

At the rally, Comrade Badrul Alam said that the tax management of Bangladesh is very backward. Tax management needs to be streamlined in the public interest. That is why it is time to formulate a progressive tax management. The poor have to be put out of tax and the rich have to be taxed. In a class divided society, the universal tax structure is unfair and against the public interest which exists in our country. He further said that due to lack of proper tax management, the owners of big domestic and foreign companies are evading taxes, on the one hand, and smuggling wealth of the country outside the country on the other.

Speakers said that the flat imposition of VAT on poor and rich people is against justice. This indirect tax called VAT is constantly hitting the livelihood of the poor people. The poor are getting poorer and the rich are getting richer. This situation needs to be changed. The speakers called upon the government to bring back about 1.1 trillion US dollars smuggled to the own country and spend it on the development of the people.

The speakers demanded to the government to formulate a budget on the basis of the policy of ’taxing the rich, not the poor’ in the national budget for next June.

News Sender
Palash Hossain
Office Secretary
Bangladesh Krishok Federation

Date: 21 January 2022